St. Croix Milestones
1948 1st Multi-Section Bamboo Fishing Pole: How it all started! St. Croix Rod Company was founded when the Johnson brothers applied innovative thinking to the vexing problem of transporting long poles. Bamboo fishing gear is no longer a part of St. Croix, but innovative thinking has remained the cornerstone.
1955 Dedicated Salmon/Steelhead Rods: The replacement of bamboo with fiberglass was seen by St. Croix engineers as an exceptional opportunity. Rods dedicated to increase success when fishing for specific species or in unique environments (such as the rolling surf) were soon coming off the production line. In 1955 St. Croix had only two salmon/steelhead models but there would be twenty-four by the following year.
1956 "Whip-Out" telescopic, tubular, fiberglass rods: Simplistic by comparison, St. Croix Whip-Out and, later, Flip-Out rods were cherished by generations of fishermen and women. Whip-Outs and Flip-Outs collapsed for storage and transport but extended to as long as twenty feet, depending on model, when it came time to fish. Originally marketed in 1956, multi-section, telescopic rods were last seen in St. Croix catalogs in 1993; a phenomenally long run in the world of manufacturing fishing rods.
1956 Fly Travel Rod: 3-piece: Long ago, St. Croix appreciated the need for fly rods in travel models. Introduced in 1956, the 978-3 personified another St. Croix tradition; the balance of quality, convenience and price, when it loaded and cast well, disassembled into three sections and listed for just $15.00. And that included a cloth sack and rigid tube. By the way, use D, HDH or HCH line if you have a 978-3.
1957 Color Impregnated Glass: Color bonded into and not painted on the fiberglass of a fishing rod may not sound like a big deal but it was indicative of the extra effort common in St. Croix products from the beginning. Management has always felt that our rods needed to be a source of pride for you and us beyond the showroom.
1957 Dedicated Musky Rods: Available in 4'6", 5' and 5'6", the Premier® Model 200 was intended specifically for musky hunters of the day. Made of solid fiberglass for the stoutest of freshwater fish, old-timers dug into their wallets for $14.95 to hit the water with one of these bruisers. The number of muskies caught proves the Model 200 was worth it.
1957 1st Ultra-Light Rod: Remember the 8100-L? Not many do, but it was the great-granddaddy of a flourishing family of St. Croix ultra-lights. Built in four lengths with a Tennessee handle for hands and reel, rods ranged in weight from 3-1/2 oz. for the 78" model to just 2-1/4 oz. for the 48" version. Not bad for fiberglass and 1950s technology, even if we say so ourselves.
1959 Ice Rod/Reel Combo: For decades fishermen of the frozen north have looked to St. Croix for ice fishing needs. The first "combo" consisted of a 40", solid glass, Model 40-C mounted with a #66 casting reel secured on a spin/cast, offset handle. A dollar was a dollar back then and a 40-CR (reel included) retailed for only $3.60.
1961 Triple-Fiber Content: An ultra-thin glass cloth blended with superior phenolic resins and an exquisite nylon elastomer allowed St. Croix to introduce the Imperial "XL" line of casting, spin/cast, spinning and fly rods. Included was the 7080-XXL, the first full-length (6') spinning rod to weigh under two ounces.
1963 Micro-Cell Foam-Filled Tubular Fiberglass: Readily recognizable by the 14K gold-plated guides, it was what was inside St. Croix Magna-Flex spinning, spin/cast and fly rods that truly set them apart. Filled with a urethane foam, flex strength was increased by more than 25% while impact resistance experienced at least a 50% gain, with little increase in weight. Each rod was packaged in a padded, steel rod-reinforced case for just $50.00.
1966 EFT (Extra-Fast Taper): Coping with the muscle applied on one end by the angler and the other by an obstinate fish, St. Croix rod engineers developed the Extra-Fast Taper (EFT) concept. Employing a design that encouraged a progressive flexing action from end to end, EFT was but one step in a continual study of rod behavior and improvement.
1970 Rhino-Flex Action: The introduction of the Criterion Series of St. Croix rods brought with it another adjustment in rod design. Each advancement in material, every revelation in rod research, enabled mechanical engineers to tweak St. Croix rods for state-of-the-art performance.
1979 Ferrule-S: Handmade metallic ferrules for bamboo rods gave birth to St. Croix Rod Company over thirty years ago. Over time bamboo had gradually given way to fiberglass and now it was time for the old-fashioned ferrules to follow. Known as Ferrule-S (pronounced "ferrule-less"), this latest innovation provided a more secure fit, removed the opportunity for metal components to deteriorate, and streamlined the manufacturing process. Molding the ferrules on precision steel mandrels made sense. And better rods.
1983 100% Graphite: Destined to replace fiberglass for a variety of reasons, St. Croix brought graphite to angling in the 4300 Series. Known as Imperial Graphite, they led the way for hundreds of graphite models in St. Croix's current lineup.
1991 Cork Tape Handle: Surf fishermen told St. Croix they needed a handle surface that would withstand the effects of saltwater, sun and significant muscle. Enlisting the experience of Ben Doerr, renowned Cape Hatteras surf fishing master, St. Croix Surf System and Elite Surf System rods came to be. Sporting comfortable and durable cork tape handle and foregrip, St. Croix surf rods made waves with waders of the frothy foam.
1999 SCIV, SCIII, SCII, & SCI Graphite: "The finest graphite and resin systems the world has to offer. Each material is ours alone. . ." So reads the 1999 St. Croix catalog. Still in use today, these exceptional St. Croix materials, with refinements, have brought hours of fishing pleasure and success to anglers the world over.
2000 SCV Graphite: Reaching for new heights of performance, the engineering department at St. Croix began using SCV Graphite. Possessing the highest modulus of any St. Croix graphite, SCV also put high-strain capabilities in the hands of fishermen. Introduced in the Legend Elite® Series, the word "elite" describes both the rods and the graphite.
2000 Carbon-Matte Scrim: Scrim is a material that reinforces the rod and reduces breakage. And a carbon-matte scrim does it with less weight than the traditional fiberglass used since 1955. Combined with resin and graphite, St. Croix's carbon-matte version provides exceptional strength, both longitudinally and laterally. And that pretty much covers it.
2000 IPC® Technology: A string of letters may not mean much until their meaning is revealed. The letters, "IPC," represent "Integrated Poly Curve." Developing a proprietary software at St. Croix gave computers in the engineering department the wherewithal to redesign the contour of rods. It's all about St. Croix doing everything possible to eliminate stress in the rod so you don't have any when you and your St. Croix are on the water.
2001 SCI Fiberglass, SCII and SCIIW Blend: It only makes sense that the biggest fish should be in the biggest water. Precision casting isn't a necessity here but plenty of power to bring up monsters of the deep is mandatory. For pure brawn, nothing exceeds the strength of SCI Fiberglass combined with SCII and SCIIW graphite all blended into each Premier® Saltwater Conventional rod.
2003 IPC® Fly Rods: In 2003 IPC® made headlines for St. Croix again, this time in the new Legend Elite® fly rods. It is obvious that a rod has to taper from butt to tip but, for optimum performance, that taper cannot be in a straight line. Called on to make the most delicate of presentations at great distances, St. Croix Legend Elite® and Legend Ultra® fly rods display the advantages of Integrated Poly Curve® Technology. Over and over and over.
2003 SCIIW Woven Graphite: Surf fishing is a demanding sport as not all reefs are underwater. The reef to set the hook in a belligerent behemoth can be considerable but so is the strength attained by combining an SCIIW woven graphite with SCIII grade as evidenced by two new St.Criox series: Avid and Premier™ Surf Rods. Just ask any beached behemoth.
2005 ART™ Technology: Advanced Reinforcing Technology™ (ART™) is the latest innovation to come out of our engineering department and go into our rods. Beginning with Legend Elites and Ultras, St. Croix has perfected the process of adding strength at critical points without sacrificing weight or increasing rod diameter. The secret? Wrap an exceptionally thin layer of graphite fibers around the rod to increase hoop strength. The last thing you want on the water is for your rod to go flat.


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